The Caverners Beatles Tribute

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Beatles music is as popular as ever – and it's keeping Canada's Premier Beatles Tribute busy.

The Beatles were without question the most influential musical group of all time. Forty one years have passed since their February 9, 1964 American debut appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show where 70 million viewers tuned in to watch these youngsters from Liverpool take over the world by storm. That performance alone inspired many teenagers to take up the guitar or drums as everyone wanted to be a Beatle. They were the only band in history to hold the top five spots at one time in the Billboard Hot 100 Chart. Between 1962 and 1967 every Beatles single went to #1 (27 in all). Their popularity eventually grew with all ages.

Today, the Beatles' individual solo efforts still keep them in the headlines. Sir Paul McCartney recently wowed 86 million TV viewers during his halftime appearance at Super Bowl XXXIX, not by using flashy special effects, dancers and "malfunctioning wardrobes", but merely by rocking the house with classic Beatles tunes that had everyone singing into their TV sets. Both McCartney's and Ringo Starr's recent concert tours have been extremely successful and have kept these former Beatles at the forefront of concert ticket sales. The recent passing of former Beatle George Harrison has also kept listeners interested in the man and his music. 2005 is also the silver anniversary of the death of John Lennon. To this day his music and messages of peace are still very inspiring.

The Caverners Beatles Tribute carries on the tradition of this popular music and allow audiences to experience first hand what it would have been like to have seen The Beatles perform live. The stage set includes the famous Vox amplifiers, Ludwig drum kit, Rickenbacker, Gretsch and Hofner guitars and costumes that help to create the presentation of an actual Beatles concert. The show starts with the high energy material from the Moptop years and includes She Loves You, I Want To Hold Your Hand and Twist and Shout. It progresses to the Sgt. Pepper album material with When I'm 64, A Day In the Life and closes with the later Abbey Road era featuring Let It Be, Get Back and Hey Jude.

The Caverners perform all of these selections live. There are no pre recorded backing tracks and no extra musicians in the wings helping to augment the sound. Everything is energetically performed by the four cast members on stage, a phenomenal feat considering the majority of recorded Beatles material was never performed live by the Beatles themselves. "We enjoy the challenge of recreating the intricate parts of the studio recordings" says Sandy Vine (who performs as Paul in the show) "It's quite a thrill to have the audience cheer you on as they hear the recognizable bits of these famous songs. Many audiences are as schooled as we are in the music and they expect to hear the tunes as they know them from the recordings. We deliver note for note recreations of the records mixed with the energy, wit and humour of a real Beatles performance."

The family entertainment aspect is a positive feature of the show. It is not uncommon at a Caverners festival appearance to see three or four generations of people singing along with every word. Families and friends of all ages can enjoy this show together. The music itself bridges the age gap.

Larger festivals such as The Niagara Grape and Wine Festival (St. Catharines) and The Canal Days Marine Heritage Festival (Port Colborne) have become recurring annual performances for The Caverners. They have become festival favourites and it is not uncommon for them to draw 5000+ people. Other main stage performances include Gananoque Festival of The Islands, The Cornwall Balloon Festival, The Niagara Food Festival and The Peterborough Festival of Lights among a growing list of many others. Theatres, casinos, fund-raising concerts and corporate functions make up the rest of the Caverners schedule keeping them very active throughout the year.

"Obviously, there will never be a true Beatles reunion due to the deaths of John Lennon and George Harrison," continues Vine, "but to be able to recreate such powerful music in their absence is a great blessing. This is music that has never gone out of style since it's inception and we plan to keep it as exciting and popular as it was forty one years ago."

For more information, online video and audio visit the official Caverners web site at: www.caverners.com or call (905)562-6683.